Agriculture specialists first noticed an issue with the wooden frames while they were being X-rayed.

By Forum Staff

A Mexican citizen last week was caught at John F. Kennedy International Airport attempting to smuggle cocaine inside wooden picture frames, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials.

CBP agriculture specialists conducted a physical search of Fabiola Guerrero Mendoza’s luggage after she arrived at JFK from Mexico City on March 21 and discovered three wooden frames that displayed an anomaly while being X-rayed. Customs officers then probed the frames, revealing a white powder that tested positive for cocaine.

Approximately 14 pounds of cocaine-filled wooden picture frames were seized. Due to the concealment method, CBP officials said, a street value could not be determined.

“CBP officers remain ever vigilant in protecting the United States from the distribution of these dangerous drugs, regardless of the concealment methods employed by these would-be smugglers,” said Leon Hayward, acting director of CBP’s New York Field Operations.

Mendoza was turned over to the Port Authority Police Department and will be prosecuted on narcotics-smuggling charges by the Queens District Attorney’s Office.